North America 1849, from Gold Rush to Warlord

Chapter 296 The Sky Over America

The Qing army besieging Nanjing was worried about how to capture this fortified city defended by the Restoration Army.

Upon hearing that the Restoration Army was willing to voluntarily relinquish Nanjing, they were naturally overjoyed.

Once Nanjing is captured and the capital of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom is taken, it will be an absolutely tremendous achievement.

All the civil and military officials present received promotions and wealth; everyone got a share.

Moreover, the conditions proposed by the Guangfu Army are not excessive at all, and can save a bloody battle. Why not?
Therefore, Zeng Guofan only mentioned it briefly, and none of the generals disagreed.

"Since you all agree to the Restoration Army's terms, let's do it this way!"

Zeng Guofan's gaze swept over the generals in the command tent, and he said in a deep voice, "However, let me make this clear from the beginning: since we have agreed to the two conditions of the Restoration Army, we must naturally keep our word!"

"If anyone enters the city and breaks the rules of not massacring the city or committing any offenses... then they should first consider whether they can bear the consequences when they encounter the Restoration Army in the future!"

"The Restoration Army not only has powerful ships and cannons, and they are rampant on the Yangtze River, but everyone witnessed the ferocity of their artillery yesterday. It's already a stroke of luck that we were able to take Nanjing so easily. Please don't cause me any more trouble!"

"There are also conditions for sparing the remaining Taiping soldiers' lives. Everyone should be aware of these conditions. We can do it, but we can't talk about it... If this reaches the ears of the censors, we will all be impeached..."

"Rest assured, sir, we understand...!"

……

After both sides agreed on the terms, the Restoration Army, having completely completed its withdrawal mission, evacuated Nanjing by boat that very night.

Along with the massive fleet, more than 30,000 Taiping soldiers, tens of thousands of their families, and more than 10,000 "concubines," female officials, maids, and servants from the Heavenly King's palace were also transported away.

Of the more than 100,000 people evacuated, the vast majority were women, numbering over 80,000.

Besides the people, there were countless gold and silver treasures, all of which the Taiping Army had looted from various places over the past few years.

According to a rough estimate, this batch of gold and silver treasures is worth at least hundreds of millions of taels of silver.

Given the exchange rate of silver to US dollars at that time, which was about 1.3 to 1.4, the value far exceeded one hundred million US dollars.

Such a vast fortune is impossible to repay; the vast majority of it will be used to develop Guangdong.

After the massive fleet departed, it left the Qing army with nothing but an empty city with little to no profit.

……

Three days later, when the fleet arrived in Guangzhou, the matter of receiving the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's "legacy" finally came to an end.

According to Shi Dakai and Feng Yunshan, they received a total of more than 300,000 people, both men and women, mostly young and strong, many of whom were battle-hardened veterans.

Of these 300,000-plus people, nearly 200,000 are women.

Guangdong already had a surplus of population, so it naturally couldn't absorb so many people and soldiers.

Starting a few months ago, these Taiping soldiers were gradually transported to California, halfway around the world, in stages.

Including Luo Dagang, Li Xiucheng, and Chen Yucheng, who had just graduated from military academy and received their diplomas, as well as other brave and skilled generals and officers, were all sent to California.

Guangdong is currently focused on construction and it is not the time for large-scale outward expansion.

But in California, on the other side, they're already ready to take action!

……

Let's turn our attention back a few months.

Panama, August 1855.

After more than three years of work, the Panama Canal, which has completed its preliminary surveys, design and preparations, is finally ready to officially begin construction!
Meanwhile, the construction of the Panama Railway, inherited from the New Grenada Republic, was finally completed and opened to traffic.

The completion of one project and the commencement of another are both significant events.

Therefore, Azo personally participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the completion of the Panama Railway and the groundbreaking ceremony for the canal.

The engineering team of tens of thousands who completed the construction of the Panama Railway immediately turned around and continued to participate in the construction of the Panama Canal.

At the same time, Zuo Zongtang also organized a massive workforce of 500,000 people and more than 800 heavy steam-powered machines.

Of these 500,000 laborers, half were Chinese, and the other half were Native Americans and Central American natives.

As a supporting measure, the newly established Panama Canal Development Company not only oversees all aspects of the Panama Canal construction, but also went public on the London Stock Exchange, the New York Stock Exchange, and the San Francisco Stock Exchange to raise funds for the canal's development.

This is the first publicly listed subsidiary of the Huamei Group, and there will be more and more in the future.

Because Panama is located in a tropical rainforest, infectious diseases are the most fatal factor affecting the construction of the canal.

During the subsequent construction of the Panama Canal by France and the United States, more than 30,000 laborers died from tropical infectious diseases, far exceeding the number of deaths caused by accidents during the construction.

The most deadly of these are malaria and yellow fever!
Therefore, the Panama Canal Development Corporation also established five modern hospitals to provide medical care for 500,000 workers.

Since Azum explained bacteriology, the University of California School of Medicine has made tremendous progress in bacteriology, virology, and infectious disease research.

With the addition of artemisinin, a specific drug for treating malaria, and more than 20 other specific drugs that Huamei Pharmaceutical Factory has successively launched on the market, the originally extremely deadly tropical infectious diseases do not seem so terrible.

Both malaria and yellow fever are caused by mosquitoes.

Under Azu's special arrangement, all laborers received training on infectious disease prevention and control; large-scale mosquito eradication campaigns were regularly carried out in the canal construction area; all laborers' living quarters were equipped with window screens and mosquito nets, and artemisinin and other effective drugs were distributed to everyone...!
Do everything possible to reduce the spread and mortality of tropical infectious diseases.

With the addition of comprehensive measures to prevent and control infectious diseases, high explosives, steam excavators, steam cranes, steam loaders, and other heavy machinery, the construction period of the Panama Canal will certainly be significantly shortened.

……

After attending the completion and groundbreaking ceremonies on the same day, Azo personally took the first train across the Isthmus of Panama from Panama City to the port of Colon on the Atlantic side.

This is not only the first train in Panama, but also the first train line to open in all of California. Although the line is short, it is of great significance.

Upon arriving at the port of Colón, Azu personally inspected the mountains of cotton weighing over a million tons.

Although the U.S. federal government discovered the irregularities in the cotton trade with the southern states and intensified its efforts to intercept it.

However, cotton trade between California and the Southern states has never been interrupted, nor has it been significantly affected.

The cotton trade is now the most profitable industry in California, generating over $500 million in net profit annually, and it cannot afford to lose.

Zuo Zongtang, who was personally in charge of the Panama Canal construction project, devoted most of his energy to the cotton trade.

Therefore, Zuo Zongtang was stationed in the port of Colon for a long time, and even temporarily moved the Panama Governor's Office to the port of Colon.

Zuo Zongtang, who accompanied the inspection, personally reported to Azu: "Boss, in the first seven months of this year, we purchased more than 1.3 million tons of cotton from various southern states, with an average purchase price of 270 US dollars per ton."

"However, more than 100,000 tons of cotton were intercepted and confiscated by the Northern Fleet. In addition to the loss of cotton, we also had hundreds of merchant ships, as well as more than 2,000 captains and crew members detained."

Azu frowned slightly: "So many merchant ships and their captains and crew members have been detained in just over six months. The losses are quite significant!"

"Yes!" Zuo Zongtang replied, "Our high-speed steam merchant fleet has lost one-third of its ships, which has seriously affected our transport capacity. We have no choice but to hire sailing ships and steamships from other shipping companies to transport cotton."

"But other shipping companies' ships are not fast enough, so they are much more likely to be intercepted and suffer much greater losses!"

Azu frowned and thought for a moment, then said, "I will try to negotiate with the Northern government to get them to release our ships and people...!"

"If the Northern government doesn't appreciate our kindness... then let's have a battle at sea with the Northern Fleet!"

Zuo Zongtang raised an eyebrow: "Boss, are we ready to break ties with the North?!"

"Hehe!" Azu smiled calmly: "With President Lincoln dead, the last bit of goodwill between me and the Northern government is gone."

"On land, our forces may be insufficient for offense, but sufficient for defense."

"But at sea, our technological advantage is unshakeable."

"Moreover, in the past year or so, our fleet has expanded to a size sufficient to wage war."

Since early 1854, shipyards in California have been working at full capacity to build various fast steam armored ships, including capital ships of 6,000 tons.

Currently, four capital ships of 6,000 tons each are under construction in the dock and will be launched in 1856.

In addition to the original four, four more 3,000-ton armored cruisers were completed and launched three months ago and are currently undergoing intensive training to achieve combat readiness.

Four other cruisers are also under construction and will be completed next year.

In addition to the original fifteen armored frigates, ten more have been built in the past year or so, and another ten are under construction.

As for the 500-ton-class coastal gunboats and patrol vessels, there are even more, with the existing ones plus the newly built ones totaling as many as fifty, and another fifteen under construction.

To date, California's fleet consists of eight armored cruisers, twenty-five armored frigates, and fifty offshore gunboats.

Although this fleet size is still inferior to that of the great powers, especially compared to England, the gap is huge.

However, if we take into account the California Fleet's advantages in speed, range, firepower, and armor, the gap is greatly reduced. Even with the dispatch of two cruisers, four frigates, and ten coastal gunboats to the Far East, the remaining fleet strength is still sufficient to fight the Northern Fleet.

According to Azu's original plan, it would be best to wait until the three-year shipbuilding program was fully completed before encountering the American fleet.

In particular, with the launch of four 6,000-ton capital ships equipped with larger 280mm guns, there is absolute confidence that they can sweep away the American fleet!
But plans can't keep up with changes. With so many ships and people being seized by the Northern Fleet, Azu couldn't take it anymore!

Azu calmly said, "We are not completely breaking ties with the North, but rather we need to maintain a proper balance, using force to promote dialogue and peace... After all, we still need to do business with the various states in the North."

"Whether it's weapons or various industrial products, Northern State is a very important market for us."

"We need to show the North how powerful we are, but we can't let it affect our ability to continue doing business, right?"

"Therefore, it is essential to strike the right balance in this process."

As Zuo Zongtang was pondering, he heard his ancestor laugh and say, "Mr. Zuo, we'll talk about fighting or making peace later. Please continue with the cotton matter."

“Very well!” Zuo Zongtang continued, “Although we suffered huge losses, with the seized ships and cotton worth about forty million US dollars, our gains were undoubtedly greater.”

"In the first seven months of this year, we sold 700,000 tons of cotton to Europe at an average price of around $1,050."

"After deducting all warehousing, transportation, losses, personnel wages, and other expenses, the net profit is US$450 million."

"The profits from cotton trading this year will be at least six hundred million US dollars...!"

Zuo Zongtang said calmly, "If we add the grain and various scarce commodities we sell to the southern states, our profits will be at least over seven hundred million US dollars... and that's just a very conservative estimate...!"

"Hehe!" Azu laughed, "What about the most optimistic estimate?"

Zuo Zongtang smiled calmly: "Cotton prices in the European market are still rising. And we are the only stable major cotton supplier."

"If cotton prices exceed $1,100 or even $1,200 per ton in the second half of the year, the annual profit could even reach... one billion US dollars!"

"Tsk tsk tsk... a billion dollars!" Azu couldn't help but pat Zuo Zongtang heavily on the shoulder: "Mr. Zuo, I never imagined that you were not only a man of both literary and military talent, a pillar of the nation in governance, but also so adept at making money!!!"

Zuo Zongtang stroked his short beard, smiled and shook his head: "This is all thanks to your strategic planning, boss!"

"All I can do is monetize the boss's strategic planning over the past few years!"

Zuo Zongtang said with deep feeling: "As early as five or six years ago, you, boss, began to lay out this huge chess game. With one hand, you established the Republican Party, with the other hand, you put Lincoln on the presidential throne, and with the other hand, you pushed forward the Civil War...!"

"These are just the surface-level arrangements; the deeper, more meticulous moves are truly astounding!"

"For example, the moles planted within the Freemasons, the pawn of the O'Hara family in the Southern states, the connections established early on with the various Southern states, the high-speed merchant fleet you built single-handedly, and the representative office in Europe...!"

"Boss, your seemingly casual moves in the past were completely incomprehensible to us before."

"It wasn't until the Civil War began that the seemingly insignificant cotton trade connected all the previous plans and moves, leading to today's daily profits and huge gains!"

Zuo Zongtang exclaimed in admiration, "If any one of your plans and moves had been missing, you wouldn't have achieved such incredible profits today!"

"It's not just the cotton trade, the arms trade is even more so...!"

"Compared to the short-term exorbitant profits of the cotton trade, the arms trade is more sustainable and long-lasting...!"

"Haha!" Faced with Zuo Zongtang's heartfelt flattery, Azu simply laughed and said, "Mr. Zuo, I'm not as strong or omnipotent as you think."

"Sometimes, it's simply a matter of having enough pieces at your disposal, and having a few that are strong enough, so that you can easily set up a brilliant move. That's all!"

Zuo Zongtang wholeheartedly agreed: "While that may be true, sir, you started from nothing and built such a foundation and controlled so many pawns in just a few years. Isn't that an incredible feat?"

"Haha, Mr. Zuo, even your flattery is so delightful!"

"I'm not flattering you...!" Zuo Zongtang said seriously.

"I know! That's precisely why it makes one feel so refreshed...!"

As they were talking, Ah Zu suddenly changed the subject: "Mr. Zuo, our Restoration Army in Guangdong is currently biding its time and honing its skills."

"But news from over there suggests that the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom is doomed!"

"Once the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom is destroyed, our Restoration Army will surely become a major threat to the Qing government."

"In that case, Mr. Zuo, your family back in your hometown in Hunan will be in danger!"

"This...!" Upon hearing this, Zuo Zongtang immediately frowned: "Then what do you mean, boss...?"

Ah Zu said, "We can bring them to Guangdong, or to California, or even to Panama, it all depends on Mr. Zuo's own wishes."

"Well…!" Zuo Zongtang hesitated for a moment before saying, "Then let's settle them in Guangdong, since we'll eventually have to go back anyway!"

"Moreover, I now have someone to take care of my daily life, and recently, they even gave me a new son...!"
"Haha, Mr. Zuo isn't that kind of pedantic, rigid straight man after all!"

Azu laughed heartily: "In that case, I'll have Shi Dakai and the others go and meet Mr. Zuo's family!"

As they walked, Ah Zu and Zuo Zongtang chatted: "Aside from the Panama situation, how is our iron ore project in Brazil progressing?"

Zuo Zongtang replied, "In the past two years, I have personally visited Brazil several times. To be honest, the iron ore there is of high quality and is rare in the world."

"But the living conditions deep in the rainforest are indeed extremely harsh, far worse than in Panama."

"That was a wild and untamed land that had never been set foot in since ancient times."

"Although the river channels have been opened up over the past two years to transport personnel, materials and machinery for iron ore development, the various strange infectious diseases inside make it difficult to guard against them."

"Currently, we have more than 3,000 people stationed in the Carajás iron ore mine area to be responsible for the early construction and development of the iron ore mine."

"Due to tropical infectious diseases, more than 3,000 people are frequently sick and bedridden, which seriously affects the progress."

"The symptoms of many diseases were something that even the doctors accompanying the team had never seen before, let alone knew how to treat. They could only try various special drugs such as penicillin and artemisinin in turn. More than sixty people have died in the mine because of these diseases."

Zuo Zongtang continued, "Even after I entered the mine, I fell seriously ill and it took me a long time to recover."

"For this reason, coupled with the fact that it rains constantly in the Amazon rainforest, the development progress has been severely affected."

"However, by the end of this year at the latest, the Carajás iron ore mine will be basically ready for mining."

“Starting next year, a steady stream of high-quality iron ore will be transported out via the Tocantins River.”

"Then it was transported by sea to the port of Colon, then transferred by the Panama Railway, and finally shipped from Panama City to California."

Zuo Zongtang added, “Although the voyage is not short and the freight is not low, the advantage lies in the open-pit mining of the Carajas iron ore mine, which has low mining costs and basically offsets the high freight costs.”

"According to our estimates, the final price of iron ore delivered to California will not exceed six dollars per ton. And next year, as the first year of mining, the output should be able to reach three million tons, which can basically ensure that the shortage of California iron ore is made up."

“The annual production will increase year by year thereafter. As for the specific production amount, that will depend on the demand in California.”

"Due to the limited transport capacity of the Tocantins River, only small boats with a capacity of less than 300 tons can transport the iron ore. We estimate that, taking advantage of the rainy season each year, a maximum of about six million tons of iron ore can be transported out each year."

“We have already commissioned shipyards along the Caribbean coast, as well as in Central and South America, to build these small steamships of over 300 tons. There are already more than 100 of these inland waterway vessels.”

"To reach the maximum transport capacity of the Tocantins River, it would take about three hundred of these inland steamships."

"If we want to transport more iron ore, we'll have to wait until the railway connecting the mines directly to the port is completed, which will take at least five years...!"

After listening to Zuo Zongtang's detailed report, Azu couldn't help but sigh, "Everything is difficult at the beginning! Especially in a wild place like the Amazon rainforest, clearing land and mining is an even more difficult task!"

"Mr. Zuo, these past few years, as Governor of Panama, you've taken on all the big and small matters single-handedly. You've really worked hard!"

"Whether it's the cotton trade, the Panama Canal, or the Brazilian iron ore project, you have made outstanding contributions!"

"Your achievements surpass those of the soldiers who conquered new territories!"

Zuo Zongtang stroked his short beard and said, "How can this be my achievement alone! Garrison Commander Harley, my chief secretary Rong Hong, and tens of thousands of laborers, as well as the soldiers of the garrison division, have all made tremendous contributions over the past few years!"

"Indeed, everyone deserves credit for Panama's current excellent situation!"

Azu said, "But without a doubt, Mr. Zuo, your merits and contributions are the greatest!"

"I will remember this contribution!"

"Once the Panama Canal construction and the Brazilian iron ore project are on track, it will be time for you, Mr. Zuo, to retire gracefully and take on a more important role to contribute your strength!"

Then, Azu asked, "Mr. Zuo, if you leave Panama, in your opinion, is Yung Wing able to continue to shoulder this heavy responsibility?"

Zuo Zongtang pondered for a moment: "Rong Hong is still a bit inexperienced, but if he is given another two or three years to become familiar with various matters by my side, he should be able to take on the responsibilities!"

"That's good. In two or three years, the construction of the Panama Canal and the Brazilian iron ore mine should be on track. The timing is just right."

"By then, even if the Civil War is not over, both sides will be exhausted."

Azu looked up at the northern sky and said in a deep voice, "By then, how much of this vast sky over America will belong to us?"

(End of this chapter)